CBI Files Chargesheet against Three accused including IFoS Officer in CREST IDFC Fraud Case of Chandigarh
The Voice of Chandigarh
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a chargesheet against Navneet Srivastava, Indian Forest Service officer(IFoS), the then Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science & Technology Promotion Society (CREST), M/s Vipam Consultancy Pvt. Ltd. and its Director, in the case relating to misappropriation of funds of CREST of UT Chandigarh for offences of Criminal Conspiracy, Destruction of Evidence, Criminal Breach of Trust, Cheating, Forgery, Using Forged Documents as genuine under BNS and for offence of Bribery, Criminal Misconduct and Abetment under Prevention of Corruption Act 2018. The funds were misappropriated from IDFC First Bank Accounts.
The investigation revealed that Navneet Srivastava, while working as CEO of CREST, entered into a criminal conspiracy with the other accused, misappropriated the funds of CREST and received illegal gratification by indulging in criminal misconduct as a public servant. His wife who is Director of M/s Vipam Consultancy Pvt. Ltd. and the company have also been chargesheeted for abetting the offence and for being part of the criminal conspiracy. This company received Rs. 95 Lakhs out of defrauded amount and further used the same to acquire immovable property.
The total quantum of the fraud in the CREST case is Rs. 75.4 crore. Navneet Srivastava had earlier been arrested by the CBI in this case and is still in Judicial Custody.
It may be recalled that the CBI has taken over this case from the Union Territory of Chandigarh. Prior to this chargesheet, chargesheets have been filed against 13 other accused in this case.
These cases are connected with the larger banking fraud at the Sector-32 Branch of IDFC First Bank, Chandigarh, wherein government funds of approximately Rs. 504 crore belonging to eight departments and organisations of the Government of Haryana were siphoned off through forged and non-existent Fixed Deposits and through fraudulent debit transactions. It may be recalled that CBI had taken over the Haryana case, from the State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau, Haryana, at the request of the State Government. In the Haryana case, the CBI has so far chargesheeted 37 accused persons. Further CBI has also taken over the third case pertaining to Smart City / Chandigarh Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh UT, and has filed a chargesheet against 07 accused persons for defrauding the Municipal Corporation to the tune of Rs. 78 Crores. All the three cases are under further investigation, to trace the fund trail and for identification of other accused persons.
The CBI remains committed to bringing all those responsible to justice and to ensuring that the complete trail of the misappropriated public funds is identified and the proceeds of crime are effectively traced.
